Nigerien collective “Raised Fists” released the song “Protect your Life” to mobilize and raise awareness against the spread of COVID-19 in Niger and across West and Central Africa.

In a region with over 15,000 reported cases of the coronavirus, the song underlines the spirit of #DontGoViral, the online campaign launched by UNESCO and the Innovation for Policy Foundation (i4Policy) on 1 April.  The campaign crowdsources creative content and addresses the urgent need for culturally relevant and openly licensed information in local African languages in order to inform communities, in their own languages, about how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and combat the infodemic and spread of disinformation and misinformation that has accompanied the pandemic.

Since its launch, the Campaign has received more than 500 submissions from more than 40 countries in Africa.  The campaign’s social media posts on Facebook and Twitter alone have reached more than 90 million people so far, and the videos have reached countless more through Youtube, messenger platforms and local radio stations across the World which have picked up the content.

Top tier artists from across Africa and the African Diaspora have joined the campaign, including Fally Ipupa, Timi Dakolo, Wale Turner, Stonebwoy, Reekado Banks, Les Freres Smith and Seun Kuti, and Didier Awadi, among others.

In addition to “Protect Your Life” by the Raised Fists Collective, UNESCO’s #DontGoViral playlist, updated regularly with new contributions, includes Bobi Wine and Nubian Li, a remix of Wine’s “Corona Virus Alert” by youth, Didier Awadi, Youssou Ndour, and the Daan Corona Collective, Les Freres Smith and Seun Kuti, Seroney, Siti Amina, Big Seush and AST, the Mukuru Youth Initiative, Goumour Ezza, Collectif 229, Msafiri Zawoze, Saintrick Mayitoukou, Pam Luster, and Mujtaba Alsedding.  The playlist also includes live painting by Dhemian art, theatre by Kuwala Creatives, and information about COVID-19 in Sudanese sign language by the Sudan Story Lab, to ensure access to information for all, including those with disabilities. 

In Niger, UNESCO and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, partnered with “Raised Fists”, an artist collective of 7 committed singers gathered around rapper Danny Lee, to mobilize and raise awareness in Niger, one of the world's most supportive countries towards refugees.

The result of this collaboration is the song “Protect your Life”, with lyrics in French, Djerma, Haoussa, and Tamashek. “We hope our voices and that of Fulani Bororo singers, the nomadic people of the Sahel, will reach every cultural and linguistic region of Niger and even beyond our borders; through all of West and Central Africa," says Danny Lee.

The music video accompanying this powerful song was shot while in confinement, in Danny Lee’s studio, and in Niamey hospital to pay tribute to its health staff working around the clock to mitigate the virus and to highlight needed hygiene measures.

In the filming of the video, the collective also involved several refugees living in Niamey actively participating in the prevention response. Appearing in the video clip, these men and women who fled conflict and war now produce soap and bleach to be distributed amongst Niger’s most vulnerable communities, with the support of UNHCR and its partners. "This pandemic affects us all and it is by staying united, all together, that we will succeed in defeating it," the collective says.

In Niger, a country that currently hosts nearly 500,000 refugees and persons forced to flee, UNHCR actively supports the government’s response to the pandemic, opening a medical centre to isolate and treat patients in Niamey or distributing medical equipment and hygiene kits around the country. The “Protect your Life” song, with support from UNESCO, complements awareness raising initiatives across these communities.

“Refugees are essential actors in the public health response and a key element of social cohesion, including in the eyes of the population that welcomes them," says Alessandra Morelli, UNHCR Representative in Niger. “Producing soap and other cleaning products, they become an integral part of the fight against the transmission of the virus. Our aim is for every refugee and every member of the host community to have locally produced soap, bleach and masks,” she adds. 

In cooperation with a local NGO, WFP and UNDP, UNHCR will train up to 5,000 women to produce liquid and antiseptic soap as well as bleach to distribute to refugees and Nigeriens throughout the country. Moreover, UNHCR is setting up a country-wide project to produce 130,000 reusable and affordable mouth masks. This project will be carried out by 108 trained refugees based in eight areas throughout the country after being provided with a UNHCR-sponsored sewing machine.

Want to Participate?  Start creating! And, please #ShareInformation and #DontGoViral!

More information on the Campaign here: DontGoViral.wiki

Submit your content here: bit.ly/dontgoviral

Learn more about the Raised Fists Collective and the song “Protect Your Life” by downloading the flyer.

For more information, please contact:

Sasha Rubel: s.rubel@unesco.org

For more information about UNESCO’s actions to support media, enhance access to information, and leverage digital technologies in the fight against the pandemic, visit:

https://en.unesco.org/covid19/communicationrinformationresponse/mediasupport